First Edition: Aug. 27, 2021

KHN: Jaw Surgery Takes A $27,119 Bite Out Of One Man’s Budget
For years, Ely Bair dealt with migraine headaches, jaw pain and high blood pressure, until a dentist recommended surgery to realign his jaw to get to the root of his health problems. The fix would involve two surgeries over a couple of years and wearing braces on his teeth before and in between the procedures. Bair had the first surgery, on his upper jaw, in 2018 at Swedish Medical Center, First Hill Campus in Seattle. The surgery was covered by his Premera Blue Cross plan, and Bair’s out-of-pocket hospital expense was $3,000. (Galewitz, 8/27)

KHN: States Pull Back On Covid Data Even Amid Delta Surge 
Two state government websites in Georgia recently stopped posting updates on covid-19 cases in prisons and long-term care facilities, just as the dangerous delta variant was taking hold. Data has been disappearing recently in other states as well. Florida, for example, now reports covid cases, deaths and hospitalizations once a week, instead of daily, as before. Both states, along with the rest of the South, are battling high infection rates. (Miller, 8/27)

KHN: Medicaid Vaccination Rates Founder As States Struggle To Immunize Their Poorest Residents
Medicaid enrollees are getting vaccinated against covid-19 at far lower rates than the general population as states search for the best strategies to improve access to the shots and persuade those who remain hesitant. Efforts by state Medicaid agencies and the private health plans that most states pay to cover their low-income residents has been scattershot and hampered by a lack of access to state data about which members are immunized. The problems reflect the decentralized nature of the health program, funded largely by the federal government but managed by the states. (Galewitz, 8/27)

KHN: Democrats Say Abortion Is On The Line In Recall Election. But Rolling Back Rights Wouldn’t Be Easy. 
As the election to recall California Gov. Gavin Newsom approaches, abortion-rights groups are warning that Californians’ right to an abortion is on the ballot. Newsom, a Democrat, himself tweeted that “abortion access” is at stake. “There’s no question that if a Republican is elected, access to abortion in California will be restricted,” Jodi Hicks, president of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California, said at a press conference in July. But this message is strategic and is more about firing up left-leaning voters than it is about policy, said Rob Stutzman, a Republican political strategist. (Bluth, 8/27)

KHN: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Vaccine Approval Moves The Needle On Covid 
The Food and Drug Administration gave full approval this week to the covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech, which will henceforth be known as “Comirnaty.” It is not clear how many vaccine-hesitant Americans will now be willing to get a jab, but the approval has prompted many public and private employers to implement mandates for their workers. Meanwhile, the U.S. House, back early from its summer break, overcame a brief rebellion by some Democratic moderates to pass a budget resolution that starts the process for a giant social-spending measure addressing many new health benefits. (8/26)

The Wall Street Journal: Supreme Court Blocks New Eviction Moratorium 
The Supreme Court on Thursday lifted the latest federal ban on evictions during the Covid-19 pandemic, siding with landlords against a moratorium the Biden administration imposed this month despite questions about its legality. Three liberal justices dissented. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has repeatedly renewed the eviction moratorium for millions of tenants affected by the pandemic, in large part to allow them to remain in their homes as state and local governments struggle to disburse some $47 billion of rental assistance provided by Congress. The current order was set to expire Oct. 3; as of July 31, just $4.7 billion of the rental assistance had reached landlords and tenants. (Bravin and Kendall, 8/26)

The Washington Post: Supreme Court Strikes Down CDC Eviction Moratorium Despite Delta’s Rise 
In an unsigned opinion released Thursday night, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority agreed that the federal agency did not have the power to order such a ban. “It is indisputable that the public has a strong interest in combating the spread of the COVID-19 Delta variant,” the majority’s eight-page opinion said. “But our system does not permit agencies to act unlawfully even in pursuit of desirable ends. . . . It is up to Congress, not the CDC, to decide whether the public interest merits further action here.” (Barnes, Siegel and O'Connell, 8/26)

PBS NewsHour: How Uncertainty Surrounding The Eviction Ban, Rental Assistance Affects Housing Security
A U.S. appeals court on Aug. 20 declined to end the CDC moratorium on evictions that was instituted during the pandemic, setting the ban up for a battle before the Supreme Court. But as the legal back-and-forth over the federal evictions ban continues, housing advocates and legal professionals, as well as organizations representing property owners, told PBS NewsHour their clients’ concerns extend well beyond the future of this moratorium. In some counties, judges have declined to enforce the ban and pushed on with evictions amid the pandemic, and rental assistance remains hard to access for both landlords and tenants in some parts of the country. Additionally, the moratorium only covers certain types of evictions, meaning they have continued to occur anyway, even though they are being filed at a lower rate than in years prior to the pandemic. (Vinopal, 8/26)

CNN: FDA Blocks Sale Of 55,000 Flavored E-Cigarette Products 
The US Food and Drug Administration blocked the sale of more 55,000 flavored e-cigarette products Thursday, its first ban of e-cigarette products since it began requiring makers to apply for premarket review last September. The FDA issued marketing denial orders for the electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) products, saying they pose a public health threat to youth in the US. Of the more than 55,000 products impacted by the decision, those not yet being sold may not be introduced into the market, and those already on the market must be removed or risk enforcement. (Mascarenhas, 8/26)

The Washington Post: FDA Orders Three Small E-Cigarette Makers To Pull Products From The Market
The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday ordered three small e-cigarette manufacturers not to sell their flavored products, the first in a series of decisions that could imperil products sold by Juul and hundreds of other e-cigarette, hookah, cigar and pipe manufacturers. Under the FDA’s orders, the manufacturers — JD Nova Group LLC, Great American Vapes and VaporSalon — must pull 55,000 existing or planned flavored products from the market or risk enforcement. Regulators said the companies’ applications failed to provide “sufficient evidence” that their products provide a net public health benefit for adult smokers compared with the “threat posed by the well-documented, alarming levels of youth use” of flavored vapes. (Diamond, 8/26)

AP: 100,000 More COVID Deaths Seen Unless US Changes Its Ways
The U.S. is projected to see nearly 100,000 more COVID-19 deaths between now and Dec. 1, according to the nation’s most closely watched forecasting model. But health experts say that toll could be cut in half if nearly everyone wore a mask in public spaces. In other words, what the coronavirus has in store this fall depends on human behavior. “Behavior is really going to determine if, when and how sustainably the current wave subsides,” said Lauren Ancel Meyers, director of the University of Texas COVID-19 Modeling Consortium. “We cannot stop delta in its tracks, but we can change our behavior overnight.” (Johnson and Forster, 8/26)

CNBC: U.S. Covid Cases Show Signs Of Slowing, Even As Fatalities Surge Again
Covid cases are still on the rise in the U.S., but the pace of infections is showing signs of slowing, especially in some of the states that have been hit hardest by the delta variant. Though cases have climbed to their highest level since January at an average of 152,000 per day over the last week, the pace of the rise in new infections has substantially slowed over the last two weeks, data compiled by Johns Hopkins University shows. New cases increased by 11% over the last week, almost a third of the seven-day jump of 30% just two weeks ago, according to the data. (Rattner and Towey, 8/26)

The New York Times: Covid-19 Surge In Oregon: State Returns To Strict Mandates 
Facing a 990 percent increase in coronavirus hospitalizations since July 9, Oregon leaders have deployed the National Guard to hospitals, dispatched crisis teams to the hardest-hit regions of the state and ordered educators and health care workers to get vaccinated or lose their jobs. Now, in her latest mandate that will take effect on Friday, Gov. Kate Brown has gone beyond what any other state has done in battling the summer surge, requiring that both vaccinated and unvaccinated people wear masks when gathering closely in public, even when outdoors. She said more restrictions might be needed as the coming days unfold and the state tries to keep in-person schooling on track. (Olmos and Baker, 8/26)

CBS News: Oregon Hospital Packed With COVID Patients As Cases Surge: "I've Never Seen So Much Death In My Career" 
"Every day we see just the body boxes roll out one after the other and then as soon as we clean the room we get somebody back in there... It's the worst we've ever seen." That's what ICU nurse Clarissa Carson told CBS News' Janet Shamlian Wednesday at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford, Oregon, where COVID-19 patients have filled the hospital. Shamlian reported constant turnover in the hospital's intensive care unit, but not because patients are getting better. (8/26)

AP: COVID-19 Surge Pummels Hawaii And Its Native Population
Kuulei Perreira-Keawekane could barely breathe when she went to a Hawaii emergency room. Nausea made it difficult for her to stand and her body throbbed with pain. Like many Native Hawaiians, she was not vaccinated against COVID-19.Perreira-Keawekane’s situation highlights the COVID-19 crisis that is gripping Hawaii as hospitals are overflowing with a record number of patients, vaccinations are stagnating and Hawaiians are experiencing a disproportionate share of the suffering. (Kelleher, 8/27)

AP: Hawaii Leaders Want Official Fired For COVID Drug Remarks
State legislative leaders have called on Hawaii’s governor to fire the Maui district health officer for promoting the use of drugs to treat COVID-19 that haven’t been approved for this use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Sen. Roz Baker, a Democrat who represents south and west Maui, said Dr. Lorrin Pang was potentially harming the lives of Hawaii’s most vulnerable citizens because people will be inclined to believe him because of his position. (McAvoy, 8/27)

AP: COVID-19 Forces Idaho Hospitals Past Capacity, Toward Crisis
Hospital facilities and public health agencies are scrambling to add capacity as the number of coronavirus cases continue to rise statewide. But many Idaho residents don’t seem to feel the same urgency. Volunteers are helping with contract tracing at the Central District Health Department, and health education classrooms are being converted into COVID-19 treatment units in northern Idaho. On Thursday, some Idaho hospitals only narrowly avoided asking the state to enact “crisis standards of care” — where scarce health care resources are allotted to the patients most likely to benefit — thanks in part to statewide coordination. (Boone, 8/27)

The Washington Post: Sturgis Motorcycle Rally Linked To More Than 100 Coronavirus Infections Amid Delta Variant’s Spread
More than 100 coronavirus infections have been linked to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, an annual event that drew hundreds of thousands of enthusiasts to South Dakota as the virus’s ferocious delta variant spread misery nationwide. Health officials in South Dakota, where the rally was held from Aug. 6 to Aug. 15, said contact tracing has connected 16 cases to the event. North Dakota identified 42 cases, while Wyoming confirmed 32, Wisconsin tallied 20 and Minnesota counted 13. (Shammas, Knowles and Keating, 8/26)

USA Today: COVID Cases In Kids Are Rising As School Year Stumbles With Outbreaks
After a year of virtual school, students and parents alike were excited for the return of in-person learning. But just as quickly as the new school year started, many children were sent back home after a slew of COVID-19 outbreaks forced them into quarantine. In Florida, school districts around the state, including in Jacksonville's Duval County, are closing schools as cases rise. New Orleans School District saw 299 active COVID-19 cases and more than 3,000 students and staff in quarantine, according to district data. A Mississippi public health official said about 20,000 students across the state are in quarantine. (Rodriguez, 8/26)

The Washington Post: Pediatricians Besieged By Parents Seeking Coronavirus Shots For Kids Under 12
As the start of the school year nears, pediatricians say they are being deluged by calls from anxious parents, who are eager to get their children vaccinated against the virus that continues its deathly rampage, especially as the delta variant appears to exact a greater toll on kids. Some parents are seeking ways to get the shots before federal officials give the go-ahead, with more than 2,100 children with covid-19 hospitalized, according to a Washington Post analysis of federal data. (Sellers and Cha, 8/26)

Stat: As Some Parents Press For Vaccines Off-Label, Pediatricians Call For Patience
Just hours after the Food and Drug Administration announced full approval for the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine on Monday, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a warning: Physicians should not vaccinate any children under the age of 12 “off-label.” But by that time, parents had already started calling their pediatricians. Full FDA approval of a drug or vaccine opens the door for off-label use, when doctors can use their discretion to provide a treatment in a way other than what it’s specifically approved for — in this case, people age 16 or older. In Raleigh, North Carolina, Patti Mulligan spoke to an administrative employee and easily made a Wednesday appointment for her 9-year-old daughter. When they showed up, they were turned away because the practice had decided not to provide off-label vaccinations. (Gaffney, 8/27)

Fox News: Louisiana Reports COVID-19 Death In Child Under 1
Louisiana health officials on Wednesday announced the death of a child under 1 due to COVID-19, marking the 11th pediatric fatality in the state since the beginning of the pandemic. The death, one of 110 new fatalities reported Wednesday, brings Louisiana’s number of COVID-19-related fatalities to 12,226. "Each COVID-19 death in Louisiana has been heart-wrenching, but the loss of such a young child, who could not be vaccinated yet, is tragic and a stark reminder of the difficult circumstance we are in throughout Louisiana," Gov. John Bel Edwards said in a news release. "Right now, we are seeing younger people hospitalized. They are getting sicker than in the previous surge and unfortunately some of them may die. Already, this week, we have confirmed 6,146 COVID cases in children and last week there were 63 pediatric cases of COVID admitted to the hospital. Even children who are not hospitalized or very sick are contagious." (Hein, 8/26)

Fox News: Louisiana High School Football Player Dies From COVID-19: Local Reports
A Louisiana community is mourning the loss of a young high school player who died after contracting COVID-19, according to local reports. Patrick Sanders, a 14-year-old Baker resident, died Wednesday, The Advocate reported. Baker Police Chief Carol Dunn told the news outlet that the entire football team is under quarantine out of an abundance of caution. (Hein, 8/26)

AP: Illinois Requires Educators, Health Workers To Get Vaccine
Illinois health care workers and educators from kindergarten through college will be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or submit to weekly testing, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Thursday in announcing new safety protocols that also include a fresh statewide mandate for masks to be worn indoors. The mandates, which overlap in several places with existing rules, are a response to a spike in COVID-19 infections fueled by the highly contagious delta variant, particularly in southern and central Illinois. (Tareen, 8/27)

Crain's Cleveland Business: MetroHealth To Require Employees To Get COVID-19 Vaccine By Fall
MetroHealth will require its employees, contractors and volunteers to receive COVID-19 vaccinations by Oct. 30, aligning with state and national associations that have urged hospitals in recent weeks to implement such requirements. "Protecting caregivers against COVID-19 is the right thing to do," MetroHealth president and CEO Dr. Akram Boutros said in a provided statement. "Our profession has been hailed as heroic because we were there when there was no protection from this disease. We cared for people and put ourselves at risk. We don't have to do that anymore. We can and have to take care of our patients and ourselves." (8/26)

Oklahoman: Integris Health Will Require Workers To Be Vaccinated Against COVID-19
Integris Health is joining several health systems in Oklahoma in requiring COVID-19 vaccinations for its staff. Now that the Pfizer vaccine has received full approval from the federal Food and Drug Administration, Integris Health will have a COVID-19 vaccination policy similar to its policy for annual flu shots. Staff will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or be granted an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Those seeking an exemption must request one by Oct. 15; otherwise, they are required to be fully vaccinated by Nov. 1. (Branham, 8/27)

The Washington Post: NFL Says It Has Sought Vaccine Mandate For Players
The NFL said Thursday that it has proposed making coronavirus vaccinations mandatory for all players and remains interested in implementing such a requirement. The NFL Players Association has not agreed to that request, according to the league. “We still would love to see that mandate go into effect tomorrow,” Larry Ferazani, the NFL’s deputy general counsel, said in a conference call with reporters. “There’s players that have done that voluntarily and have been educated. We’re at 93 percent. We still can improve the final seven percent. We’d love to see that.” (Maske, 8/26)

Detroit Free Press: GM Is Requiring Salaried Workforce To Disclose Vaccination Status
General Motors is requiring all of its U.S. white-collar employees to reveal their COVID-19 vaccination status as the automaker evaluates whether or not to mandate vaccination across its salaried workforce. Upon learning the news, UAW President Ray Curry said Thursday afternoon that the union has not asked its hourly workforce members to disclose their vaccination status and will not do so. The union encourages its members to get vaccinated, but leaves it a voluntary decision. (LaReau, 8/26)

USA Today: California University Professor Who Had COVID Sues To Block Vaccine Mandate
A professor of psychiatry and human behavior at the University of California-Irvine is suing the university system over its vaccine mandate, arguing that he has "natural immunity'' from having contracted the virus and does not need inoculation. Dr. Aaron Kheriaty, who had COVID-19 last year, is asking a U.S. District Court for an injunction that will allow him to work without getting vaccinated and also requesting that the policy be ruled unconstitutional, the Orange County Register reported. The UC system said in July that all students, faculty and staff would have to be vaccinated against COVID. (Miller and Ortiz, 8/26)

Roll Call: COVID-19 Vaccinations Required For Most Green Card Applicants
Immigrants in the U.S. applying for legal permanent residence must show proof of being vaccinated against COVID-19 under a new policy beginning Oct. 1, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency said it now classifies COVID-19 as a “Class A inadmissible condition,” and failure to vaccinate against a vaccine-preventable disease would render a person ineligible for a visa. (Simon, 8/26)

AP: Half Of US Workers Favor Employee Shot Mandate
Half of American workers are in favor of vaccine requirements at their workplaces, according to a new poll, at a time when such mandates gain traction following the federal government’s full approval of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine. The poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that about 59% of remote workers favor vaccine requirements in their own workplaces, compared with 47% of those who are currently working in person. About one-quarter of workers — in person and remote — are opposed. (Olson and Fingerhut, 8/26)

AP: Nevada Coronavirus Vaccination Promotion Ends With $1M Prize
A man from the Las Vegas area won the $1 million grand prize Thursday to cap an eight-week coronavirus vaccination jackpot program that Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak created for successfully promoting coronavirus inoculations. The prize winners were introduced by their first name and last initial at a live event hosted by the governor at the Las Vegas Convention Center, by aides at a satellite gathering at the Sierra Arts Foundation’s Riverside Gallery in Reno, and streamed to the internet. (8/27)

The Boston Globe: Indoor Mask Mandate Starts In Boston, A Day After Janey Says COVID-19 Cases Have Stabilized
An indoor mask mandate takes effect in Boston on Friday, a day after Acting Mayor Kim Janey said COVID-19 cases and positivity rate leveled off during the past week, following a period where such metrics ticked upward as the city battled the Delta variant. “After weeks of increases, we have seen our cases and positivity stabilize during the last week,” said Janey at a Thursday City Hall news conference. Janey said the most recent 7-day average for COVID hospitalizations in the city is 93, well below the 126 average in May when the city reopened and below the city’s threshold of concern. (McDonald, 8/26)

AP: GOP Leaders Reject Wolf's Call For Mask Mandate In Schools
Whether students and staff should be required to mask up in Pennsylvania schools will remain a local decision, at least for now, after top Republican lawmakers on Thursday rejected Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s call for a statewide mandate. The majority of districts are not requiring masks as students return to class, and just 36% of Pennsylvania residents between the ages of 12 and 17 are fully vaccinated, according to recent federal data. Children under 12 are not eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. (Rubinkam, 8/26)

AP: Maryland Teacher On Leave After Refusing To Wear Mask
A Maryland teacher said she was placed on leave after refusing to comply with a school mask mandate. Angela Harders, a special education teacher at Paint Branch High School, said she was taking a stand against forced masking, The Washington Post reported. “Everyone should have the freedom to choose,” she said in the report Wednesday. (8/26)

NBC News: Brother And Sister Banned From High School For Not Wearing Masks
The father of two high school students in California says his children are being discriminated against because of their religious beliefs after they refused to wear masks on the first day of school and are now banned from campus. “They were sent home and told not to come back with or without a mask,” said Gary Nelson, whose children, Drew, 17, and Victoria, 16, attend the Springs Charter Schools Temecula Student Center. “If they do, they would be charged with trespassing.” (Planas, 8/26)

AP: Parents Sue Missoula School District Over Mask Requirement
Several parents are suing Missoula public schools over a mask requirement as the school year in Montana is set to begin amid a new wave of COVID-19 cases. An attorney representing parents of students in Missoula said the requirement is in violation of the state’s constitution, which guarantees individuals the right to make their own medical decisions. (Samuels, 8/27)

The Hill: At Least 90,000 Students Have Had To Quarantine Because Of COVID-19 So Far This School Year 
Just weeks into the new school year, at least 90,000 children in 19 states have had to or are currently quarantining or isolating after contracting COVID-19 or coming into contact with someone who tested positive for the disease. The disruptions have caused uncertainty for parents, students and school districts that had hoped to resume in-person instruction after a year marked by lockdowns and virtual learning. (Schnell and Vakil, 8/26)

Los Angeles Times: Strict COVID-19 Quarantine Rules To Be Enforced At L.A. Schools
Los Angeles County health officials will continue to enforce strict school quarantine rules amid a “sobering” 3,186 coronavirus cases at campuses countywide last week, public health officials said Thursday. The county quarantine rules, which are stricter than state guidelines, have raised concerns among some school leaders and parents about academic disruption after thousands of students and staff members were sent home in the opening days of the school year. In the Los Angeles Unified School District alone, 6,500 were in quarantine or isolation the first week of class. (Blume, Alpert Reyes and Lin II, 8/26)

CIDRAP: Large Real-World Study: Pfizer's COVID Vaccine Is Safe 
The largest real-world study of a COVID-19 vaccine to date shows that Pfizer/BioNTech's shot is safe and linked to substantially fewer adverse events than SARS-CoV-2 infection in unvaccinated patients. A team led by researchers from the Clalit Research Institute in Tel Aviv, Israel, and Harvard University matched vaccinated Israelis 16 years and older (median age, 38) with similar but unvaccinated people infected with SARS-CoV-2 from Dec 20, 2020, to May 24, 2021. They then derived risk ratios (RRs) and risk differences 42 days after vaccination (short- to medium-term) using the Kaplan-Meier estimator. (Van Beusekom, 8/26)

Bloomberg: Previous Covid Prevents Delta Infection Better Than Pfizer Shot 
People who recovered from a bout of Covid-19 during one of the earlier waves of the pandemic appear to have a lower risk of contracting the delta variant than those who got two doses of the vaccine from Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE. The largest real-world analysis comparing natural immunity -- gained from an earlier infection -- to the protection provided by one of the most potent vaccines currently in use showed that reinfections were much less common. The paper from researchers in Israel contrasts with earlier studies, which showed that immunizations offered better protection than an earlier infection, though those studies were not of the delta variant. (Fay Cortez, 8/27)

Modern Healthcare: ICER To Review Efficacy Of COVID-19 Treatments
The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review plans to review the efficacy of several of the most commonly used COVID-19 treatments. An independent review panel will deliberate and vote on a report presented during the group's Midwest Comparative Effectiveness Public Advisory Council in April, the organization announced Wednesday. The interventions under evaluation include casirivimab and imdevimab, sold by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals under the brand name REGEN-COV. Use of this treatment, which received emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration last November, has increased in states like Florida and Texas, where vaccination rates are low while new COVID-19 cases have been spiking. (Ross Johnson, 8/26)

Bloomberg: CVS Limits Purchases Of Covid Rapid Tests Due To High Demand
CVS Health Corp. is limiting customers’ purchases of rapid, over-the-counter Covid-19 tests, with a maximum of six packages available online and four in its pharmacies, as the spread of the delta variant spurs demand. Put in place this week, the limits apply to Abbott Laboratories’s BinaxNOW along with a test from the startup Ellume, according to an email from a CVS spokesperson. Both tests are available without a prescription. (Court, 8/26)

The Hill: DC Expands At-Home Coronavirus Testing Program 
Washington, D.C., expanded COVID-19 testing efforts on Thursday, offering 11 new sites where residents could pick up and drop off coronavirus testing kits. The development is a part of a larger initiative in D.C., called the Test Yourself DC program, which provides people the opportunity to either take a COVID-19 test kit home and drop off samples later that day, or take a COVID-19 test on site. (Vakil, 8/26)

Calmatters: Nurse Shortages In California Reaching Crisis Point
Around California — and the nation — nurses are trading in high-pressure jobs for a career change, early retirement or less demanding assignments, leading to staffing shortages in many hospitals. Hospitals are struggling to comply with the state’s nurse staffing requirements as pandemic-induced burnout has exacerbated an already chronic nursing shortage nationwide. But burnout isn’t the only thing compounding California’s nursing shortage: The state’s new vaccine mandate for health care workers is already causing headaches for understaffed hospitals before it is even implemented. Some traveling nurses — who are in high demand nationwide — are turning down California assignments because they don’t want to get vaccinated. (Hwang, 8/26)

Stat: Biden HHS Hires Outside Firms To Audit Covid-19 Grants To Hospitals 
The Biden administration has hired several separate outside contractors to police the billions in Covid-19 grants it sent to hospitals and health care providers, federal records show. The contracts, which have not previously been reported, are a sign that the federal government is beefing up enforcement on the grants that were intended to help health care providers recover from the pandemic. The Trump administration faced criticism for initially sending money out to health care providers based on past income, and not on need, and punted a difficult oversight process to the Biden team. (Cohrs, 8/27)

Modern Healthcare: U.S. Chamber Drops Health Insurer Price Transparency Lawsuit
Less than a week after the Biden administration delayed enforcement of controversial provisions of an insurer price transparency rule, a business group dropped its lawsuit seeking to block the rule. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce earlier this month sued HHS, CMS, the Labor Department, the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. The complaint alleged that provisions in the so-called Transparency in Coverage Rule are unlawful and overly burdensome and urged a judge to throw them out. (Bannow, 8/26)

Modern Healthcare: Cigna Expands ACA Coverage To 93 New Counties
Cigna is expanding its health coverage offerings in three new states and 93 new counties for customers using the Affordable Care Act marketplaces. Pending final regulatory approvals, Cigna's individual and family plans will be available in Georgia, Mississippi and Pennsylvania, as well as in additional counties in Arizona, Florida and Virginia, potentially reaching 1.5 million new customers. (Devereaux, 8/26)

Modern Healthcare: The Pros And Cons Of Surgery Outcome Guarantees
More hospitals are experimenting with outcome guarantees to attract cost-conscious employers. Geisinger has incrementally expanded its 90-day warranty on knee and hip replacements to two-year or lifetime guarantees on knee, hip and shoulder surgeries that cover avoidable complications. Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle and Hoag Orthopedic Institute in Irvine, California, have surgical warranties for privately insured patients in bundled payment contracts. (Kacik, 8/26)

CIDRAP: Breast Cancer Screening Rates Decreased During COVID-19
Across 32 US community health centers (CHCs), breast cancer screening rates dropped 8% from 2019 to 2020, and minorities and uninsured people were disproportionately affected, according to a Cancer study today. All sites included were part of an American Cancer Society grant program that worked to address disparities in breast cancer mortality through 2020. (8/26)

Stat: Does Breast Density Matter For Older Women’s Risk Of Cancer? 
Breast density is a known risk factor for developing breast cancer, but that well-accepted research finding is derived from studies conducted in women under age 75. That makes sense because breast density declines with age, but cancer epidemiologist Dejana Braithwaite of the University of Florida’s Cancer Control and Population Sciences Program wondered about older women: How much does density drop, and how much might it matter? (Cooney, 8/27)

NPR: Judge Challenges Sacklers' Immunity In Purdue Pharma Bankruptcy
A federal bankruptcy judge says he'll rule Friday on the fate of Purdue Pharma and its owners, members of the Sackler family, who are at the center of a national reckoning over the deadly opioid epidemic. Judge Robert Drain signaled he is likely to approve the reorganization plan for the makers of OxyContin. But he also demanded last-minute changes limiting legal immunities granted under the deal to the Sacklers and their associates. (Mann, 8/26)

The Hill: Overdose Deaths In New Mexico Reached All-Time High In 2020 
Overdose deaths from alcohol, fentanyl and methamphetamine reached an all-time high in New Mexico in 2020, according to a new report presented to state lawmakers on Thursday. The report revealed that Fentanyl-related deaths saw a near 129 percent increase from 2019 to 2020 in preliminary figures, with numbers expected to increase. (Jenkins, 8/26)

USA Today: 1 In 4 College Athletes Say They Experienced Sexual Abuse From An Authority Figure, Survey Finds
For Evan Cooper, who grew up playing football in Miami, becoming a star defensive back who never missed a game at a major college such as the University of Michigan was “a dream come true.” But during his time on campus in the early 1980s, he became one of the hundreds of U of M survivors who have accused late athletic doctor Robert Anderson of sexual assault and misconduct. Cooper, 59, who sued the university along with dozens of anonymous male athletes last August, said he wasn’t fully aware at the time that he was being abused, and he didn’t want to come forward and jeopardize his spot on the football team. (Yancey-Bragg, 8/26)

CBS News: TSA Sees Lowest Air Travel Numbers Since May 
Travelers are canceling flights amid the summer surge in COVID-19 cases. The Transportation Security Administration reported its lowest air travel numbers of the summer on Tuesday and Wednesday after hitting its highest traffic of the year at the beginning of August.  More than 1.4 million people went through TSA checkpoints Tuesday and 1.5 million on Wednesday, the agency reported. It's a large decrease from the 2.2 million reported in early August. (Barnett, 8/26)

Reuters: Washington State Eradicates First 'Murder Hornet' Nest Of The Year
Washington state eradicated its first Asian giant hornet nest of the year by vacuuming out 113 worker hornets and removing bark and decayed wood near the nest, Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) officials said on Thursday. The so-called stinging "murder hornets," the world's largest hornets, can grow to two inches (5 cm) in length and prey on native bee and wasp populations, consuming honeybee hives and threatening agriculture. (8/26)

The Washington Post: Wildfires Prompt Air Quality Alerts Across The West 
Thick smoke blanketed the area around Reno, Nev., in recent days, plumes wafting over the mountains from wildfires burning in Northern California and settling in the valley, fueling record bad air quality.This week, the area experienced its top three worst air pollution days on record, according to Washoe County officials. ... In several states across the West, smoke from the largest of numerous active blazes is prompting warnings about the air quality. Alerts warning the public about pollution levels remained in effect Thursday in parts of Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Wyoming, according to a map on the National Weather Service website, largely because of wildfire smoke. Such alerts were also issued in parts of Minnesota and Wisconsin because of smoke drifting from the Greenwood Fire burning in northeast Minnesota. (Firozi and Levitt, 8/26)

Reuters: Contaminant In Moderna Vaccines Suspected To Be Metallic Particles
A contaminant found in a batch of Moderna Inc's COVID-19 vaccines delivered to Japan is believed to be a metallic particle, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported, citing sources at the health ministry. ... Spanish pharma company Rovi, which bottles Moderna vaccines for markets other than the United States, said the contamination could be due to a manufacturing issue on a production line. (8/27)

Bloomberg: Sinopharm, Sinovac Shots Protective In Guangdong Outbreak: China Researchers
China’s inactivated vaccines maintained their protective power during a recent outbreak of Covid-19 in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, providing real world evidence about their ability to stave off the highly infectious delta variant. The immunizations from state-owned Sinopharm and Sinovac Biotech Ltd. had a combined effectiveness of 70% against pneumonia caused by Covid and completely protected against severe disease caused by the delta variant, according to a pre-print study from researchers with the Guangdong Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The paper hasn’t yet been reviewed by outside experts. (8/27)